How cute are these?

Inspired by all of the adorable dyed deviled eggs I’ve seen on Pinterest, I decided to make these for my sister’s Easter celebration this past weekend. Easy, cute and so delicious if you use my deviled egg recipe (not to toot my own horn, but for real.)

The Perfect Hard boiled Egg: Place your eggs in a pot and cover with cold water. Bring your water to a boil, and once the water is boiling (it’s okay if it boils for a minute), turn the heat off, keep the eggs covered, and set your timer for 15 minutes. Once the 15 minutes are up, submerge the eggs in a ice water bath.  Once cool to handle, peel eggs and cut in half length wise,  scooping out yolks and placing into a separate bowl.

To dye the eggs whites: Fill two containers (bowls, glasses, etc) of water (about half way, enough to cover the eggs) with about 3 drops of food coloring of your choice into each. (For lighter colors like yellow, you will need a 4-5 drops). Place cut egg whites in water until they become the desired color of your choice. (The pink took quickly, while the yellow stayed in the water for an extra couple of minutes.)

Caramelized-Onion Deviled Eggs

1/2 a medium white onion, finely diced
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup Mayonnaise ( I used light)
Yellow Mustard
Tabasco Hot Sauce
Salt & Pepper, to taste

1.Heat up your pan with half the tablespoon of butter. Add the finely diced onion. Turn the heat to medium-low, saute the onion, adding the rest of the butter half way, until crispy/caramelized (making sure not to burn the small pieces). Set aside.

2.Mix the mayonnaise with yellow mustard, hot sauce, salt and pepper. I eyeballed, tasting as I went- depending on how spicy/tangy you like your mixture, add each to taste (I only did a few drops of hot sauce, and enough mustard to turn the mayonnaise a light yellow.)

3. Fluff the yolks with a fork, and add in the cooled caramelized onion. Mix with enough of the mayonnaise mixture to the consistency of your choice (I like it left slightly thick). If you have a pastry bag, pipe the mixture into the egg whites, otherwise, just spoon it into the whites. Enjoy as is or top with chives, bacon bits or paprika.

Enjoy!

I’m obsessed with photo booths,  but really, who isn’t? Instant gratification; four perfectly cute and usually hysterical photos in your hands faster than it would  take to get a drink from the bar. Over the years, I’ve collected way too many of these photo strips and I’m always left wondering what to do with them once I get home. A photo booth album is one idea, but my favorite way to display these babies  is on my fridge, so I’m constantly reminded of the good times, and that I have awesome friends. The only problem is that after some time the magnets holding these delicate photos start to ruin them. The most logical solution seemed to make the photo booth pictures into magnets themselves.

This is seriously the easiest DIY ever. You need:

1. Photo booth Pictures

2. Magnet Paper (I picked up some ProMag Magnetic Adhesive Sheets from Dick Blick, but any brand should do)

3. Scissors

Just attach your photos to the magnet paper, cut them out, and you’re done! I like to trace the photos and cut the magnet paper before applying, it seems like less of a mess/waste. Then, any extra bits get cut off as well. Definitely try to line up your photos perfectly before applying, you don’t want to have to peal them off and reapply- the photos start to get bent and ruined. Also, if you have small children or pets in the house, be diligent in throwing out the extra little bits of the magnet paper.

A couple preview shots of scans from Project X, basically the coolest magazine ever made. If you’ve watched Party Monster, you already know the sordid history of Michael Alig, but it wasn’t all murder and drugs and it wasn’t all about him anyway. A post to come soon with more scans and the story behind my having, Ok borrowing, this amazing piece of NYC Club Kid history.

]]> http://odetoawe.com/blog/2012/03/project-x-a-preview/feed/ 0 http://odetoawe.com/blog/2012/03/sunday-brunch-saint-germain/ http://odetoawe.com/blog/2012/03/sunday-brunch-saint-germain/#comments Sun, 11 Mar 2012 22:48:42 +0000 Elizabeth http://odetoawe.com/blog/?p=3379 Sunday brunch with the gang at Saint Germain in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn. Where: 8303 3rd Ave (between 83rd St & 84th St) , Bay Ridge What: The ...]]>

Sunday brunch with the gang at Saint Germain in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn.

Where: 8303 3rd Ave (between 83rd St & 84th St) , Bay Ridge

What: The Eggs Benedict- runny eggs on soft brioche with either ham, spinach, or salmon.

When: Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm

Why: Delicious French brunch staples like Croissant Sandwiches with silky Bechamel sauce,  all served with coffee/tea, juice and amazing French desserts (plus brunch cocktails for $3!!!)

Website: http://www.saintgermainfb.com/

Spray Painted Dinosaurs

I’m about to go toy shopping in my nephew and niece’s playroom just to recreate this amazing DIY (stealing toys from children doesn’t make me a bad person right?)  Spray painted toy dinosaurs- because why not? This cute project comes from mrs-ferguson, a dope DIY blog with recipes and OMG a unicorn make-over?

Fake A Vintage Photo

I own a couple cute vintage cameras that are purely decorative because I have no idea if they work- the film is so [insert preferred expletive] expensive! A Beautiful Mess shows us how to fake a vintage photo using a digital camera along with your vintage one- working or not.

 Color Oxfords

This DIY isn’t actually from this week..or even this year, but when I spotted it in the related links of I Spy DIY, I knew I had to include it. With spring right around the corner (Daylight Saving Time this weekend!) this is the perfect way to spring-ify an old pair of  shoes.

]]> http://odetoawe.com/blog/2012/03/3366/feed/ 0 http://odetoawe.com/blog/2012/03/high-tea-with-fashions-elite/ http://odetoawe.com/blog/2012/03/high-tea-with-fashions-elite/#comments Wed, 07 Mar 2012 15:00:35 +0000 Elizabeth http://odetoawe.com/blog/?p=3352 Oh hai Vivienne Westwood Tea time just got a little more haute now that you can have your favorite fashion folk over for a cup. ...]]> Oh hai Vivienne Westwood

Tea time just got a little more haute now that you can have your favorite fashion folk over for a cup. Prêt-à-porTea, a 5 tea party pack offers up some fashionable faces to adorn your pretty tea cups. The party invites include Yves Saint Laurent, Naomi Campbell, Jean Paul Gaultier, Vivienne Westwood and what looks like Kate Moss.

I found this cute little tea set while perusing Fab.com one day and couldn’t resist. I haven’t actually tried any of the teas yet, although I assume it’s all one kind. I’m too in love with the little pack to part with even one tiny fashion face. The best part? Definitely the details.

Naomi’s phone has blood on it…

If you want to have your own fashion tea party, it’s produced by Donkey Creative Lab in Germany. If you want to check out Fab.com, here’s an invite.

I might not eat land meat, but I can definitely appreciate how glamorous it would be to serve a golden turkey to your unsuspecting guests next Thanksgiving. Replace the turkey with a golden piece of tofu and I’d be ecstatic. Of course, since it has been about two years since I’ve eaten meat, maybe my meat eating readers are shaking their heads at my insanity?

The Deli Garage, a “food cooperative” and makers of this odd but super cool “food finish” assure that it’s food safe; completely harmless and tasteless.  If golden turkeys aren’t your bag, what about golden olives for a super fancy dirty martini? Or golden cupcakes, golden apples, golden fancy truffle fries?

In addition to making gold and silver food spray paint, the creative geniuses behind The Deli Garage have come up with a whole bunch of equally unique food collaborations.

Pencils + Parmesan Cheese = “Cheese Pencils” with Pencil Sharpener

 Baking + Construction = “Brickstones”

Plaster + Chocolate = “Filler”

For more food fun, check out The Deli Garage blog here.

If you’ve walked into a Starbucks in the past year, you’ve probably noticed these tiny treats lining the display window.  Cake and frosting is mixed together and covered with a chocolate candy coating and of course, presented on a long lollypop stick. These fancy little treats look labor intensive, and while there are a few steps, they’re not much harder to make then a cupcake. Don’t be discouraged if you can’t get the hang of dipping the first time around, just look at my lumpy but totally still cute (and delicious!) pirates.

Pirate Cake Pops
(recipe adapted from Bakerella)

Makes about 25-30 pops

1 Fully Baked Cake (I used Duncan Hines French Vanilla)
1 Can Frosting (or make your own! Recipe to follow at bottom)
1 Bag White Candy Melts
1/4 Bag Red Candy Melts
Black  Edible Food Writer or Black Gel Food Coloring
25-30 Lollypop Sticks (I used 8 inch, but they were pretty long, 6 inch is probably better)
Styrofoam

Let’s Make Cake Pops!

1.Bake your cake according to instructions; let cool.

2.Crumble the cake completely; with a fork, spatula or my preferred method, my hands. Once crumbled, add your frosting, a bit a time, until the mixture looks like cookie dough (you might not have to use all of the frosting).

3.Shape into balls. I used a coffee scoop, about 2 and 1/2 tablespoons, to get evenly sized balls. Once shaped, put balls in freezer for 5 minutes, then fridge for anywhere from 20 minutes to overnight. (I found that putting them in the freezer longer made them more susceptible to cracks.)

4.Melt white candy according to instructions. Dip lollypop a half inch into melted candy, then insert half way into cake pop. Immediately dip entire cake pop into candy melt. Do NOT turn the cake pop in the candy melt, it will fall apart. Dip straight in, then remove, and if anything, lightly tap the excess candy off/let it drip off. (The first time I made these, I couldn’t properly dip them at all, so I used a spoon to coat them with the melted candy- which is why they’re lumpy) Insert Cake Pop into styrofoam to cool. Repeat with all pops. Put leftover white candy aside.

5. Once cooled, melt red candy. Dip the top of the pops into the candy melts, creating a red bandana. If you want, you can take an extra lollypop stick, dip into melted white candy, and create white tiny dots on the bandanna.

6. Mix black food coloring with white candy, or use a black food writer, and create the pirate face.

Let cool and serve!

These cakes dry completely hard, so they’re perfect for party favors. Get some clear lollypop treat bags, cute ribbon, and you’ve got the perfect party take-away for your guests.

Happy Baking.

Vanilla Cream Cheese Frosting

1 stick butter (room temperture)
1 package cream cheese (room temp)
3/4 package of confectioners sugar
3/4 teaspoon vanilla

Beat room temperature butter and cream cheese till incorporated, going from low to medium. When basically incorportated, anywhere from 3-5 minutes, add vanilla. Then, add sugar until desired thickness and sweetness is reached. Once that happens, beat on high till silky smooth.

Last summer, I found the apartment of my dreams. Spacious but cozy, with high ceilings, big windows and lot’s of natural light, it was almost perfect. Why almost? Well, the apartment needs a complete renovation. With a gutted kitchen, uneven floors, doors with cut out holes for (I suspect) cats, and a bathroom that looks like it’s housing several diseases,  this is no “move-in” ready deal. With a little imagination though, you can definitely see its beautiful potential. Plus, it’s  in the same neighborhood that I already live in and have grown to love, and even after doing a full-renovation, it will still be way under the price of other “move-in” ready apartments I had seen in the same area. So, after months of struggling with a co-op board to be able to begin remodeling the place, we’re finally on our way. Of course, this means the hard part has begun.

Remodeling an apartment is scary work. You’re stuck with everything you choose, and those tiny color swatches at Home Depot really don’t give you a great idea of what it will look like on your walls or cabinets. For example, after finding a cabinet color I love (river rock by Thomasville) I did some research and found out that the pretty light grey swatch in the store actually looks more taupe when it’s in your kitchen and hit with natural light. See, scary!

So, to get a clearer understanding of what I want, I’ve begun assembling pictures of couches and wall colors and cabinets and pretty over-the-top rooms of inspiration like the ones in this post. For example, the one above features a glamour bomb- big sparkly chandelier, rich purple fabrics and that amazing mirror wall. Below, we have more modern glamour with the silver striped Parisian walls, dark boudoir photographs, and neutral colors. However, both photos embody what I want my apartment to be; glamorous. I have many sides to me and I like so many styles. My previous apartment was more vintage/antique looking, and now, when I think of my personal style and preference, where I’ll feel most at home, it’s somewhere glamorous. Maybe it won’t be as over-the-top as these two, but it will definitely include some glamorous elements while still feeling cozy. And because I like to share and need confirmation that I’m not (completely) crazy in my choices, I’ll be taking you guys on this journey with me. Buckle up- it’s about to get glamorous.

via thedecorista.com